Gate-latch.



No. 781,792. PATENTED FEB. 7, 1905. F. W. SIMONS.

GATE LATCH.

APPLICATION FILED 13120.23, 1903.

m fianfiwlmww, I Qc Iop, If 5 I y NO. 781,792. Patented February '7,1905.

UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIcE.

FRANK I". SIMONS, OF LEW'ISTOIVN. ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TODAYTON BLAOKABY, OF LEWISITOlVN, ILLINOIS.

GATE-LATCH.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 781,792, dated February7, 1905.

Application filed December 23,1903. Serial No. 186,348.

IP71 if Z ed to swing on a post ll, as by hinges 12, in 5 Be it knownthat I, FRANK IV. SIMONS, acitithe usual manner and will be of the usualsize. zen of the United States, residing at Lewis- A supplemental orextension gate is shown town, in the county of Fulton and State ofatl3and hinged to swing, as at l-t, upon a post 5 Illinois, haveinventeda new and usefulGate- 15, the free ends of the two gates coupledLatch, of which the following is a specific: detachably by a latch, asat l6, as shown. The tion. supplemental gate will generally be smallerThis invention relates to gate-latches, and than the main gate and willbe opened only has for its object to provide an improved dewhen requiredto permit abnormally large to vice of this character for latching a gateto a objects to pass through, as above noted.

stub-post over which the gate swings. It is Beneath the outer or freeend post 17 of the furthermore designed to effect an automatic smallergate when closed a shorter post 18 is engaging of the latch members whenthe gate embedded, with its upper end projecting only is swung to aposition over the stub-post and a short distance above the ground,(indicated 5 to provide for the convenient release of the at 19.)Attached to the bottom of the post 17 latch when it is desired to openthe gate. and to the top of the post 18 are cap mems Another object isto embody the parts of hers 2021, the cap members having spaced thelatch in such form as to facilitate their side flanges embracing thesides of their reattachment to the bottom of the gate and the spectiveposts and connected thereto by trans top of the stub-post and also tohave the verse bolts 24 25, as shown. The cap memmembers braced againstlateral strains when ber 20 is provided with an integral tongue 7interengaged. .26, cleft from its bottom and offset therefrom, Withthese and other objects in view the while the cap member 21 is providedwith a present invention consists in the combination similarly-formed,but reversely-disposed, in 5 and arrangement of parts, as will behereintegral tongue 27, otfsetfrom its top, as shown.

after more fully described, shown in the aclhe tongues 26 27 arereinforced, respeccompanying drawings, and particularly poiuttively, attheir root ends by bent plates 28 ed out in the appended claims, itbeing under- 29, riveted thereto and to the cap members, stood thatchanges in the form, proportion, as shown. Attached to one of thetongues, 30 size, and minor details may be made within preferably to theone on the cap member 21,

the scope of the claims without departing is a resilient latch-bar 31),having its free end 30 from the spirit or sacrificing any of theadbarbed, as at 31, and extending beyond the vantages of the invention.end of the cap member, as shown.

In the drawingsillustrative of themvention, 'hen the smaller gate 13 1sswung to its 35 in which corresponding parts are denoted by closedposition, the tongues 26 and 27 of the like designating characters,Figure 1 is a side latch members approach one another in oppo- 5 view ofa pair of gates with the improved desite directions, and as the tongue27 is offset vice applied. Fig. 2 is a side view, and Fig. upon theupper side of the member and the 3 is an end view, enlarged, of theimproved tongue 26 is offset upon the under side of the 4 device. Fig.4: is a longitudinal sectional upper member the tongue 26 will passbeneath view. Figs. 5 and 6 are perspective views, the tongue 27, withthe bottom of the upper enlarged, of the two members comprising themember upon the top of the lower member. improved device disconnected.Fig. 7 is a The tongue 26 will occupy the space or slot cross-sectionalview of the lower latch memfrom which the tongue 27 has been displaced45 her. or offset, while the tongue 27 will fit in the Like charactersof reference designate coropening or slot from which the tongue 26 hasresponding parts in each and every figure of been offset, while thenotched end ofthe memthe drawings. ber 30 will snap over the rear edgeof the cap The main gate is represented at 10, mountmember 20, andthereby prevent longitudinal separation of the members. tongues 26 and27 fitting in the slots or openings in the members 21 and 20,respectively, there is an interlocked engagement between the members tobrace the same against lateral strains, and thereby maintain the samerigidly connected when interlocked. If the tongue 26 were omitted, therewould be only an ineffectual bracing against lateral strains by thetongue 27 fitting in the slot or opening of the member 20. Theinterlocking and interengaging tongues thuscoact with thespringlatchbarto form a firm, strong, and automaticallyclosing coupling means to holdthe smaller gate closed and with sufficient rigidity to act as a supportfor the free end of the larger gate and to carry the socket member 32 ofthe latch 16, as shown, while at the same time easily releasable bymerely depressing the protruding barbed end 31 of the spring-latch, asby the foot of the operator, and swinging the smaller gate open. Inclosing it is only necessary to forcibly enter the interlocking tonguesinto their respective opposing cap members and close the gate above itsstoppost 18, when the latch member 30 31 will be automatically engaged,as will be obvious.

The cap members, together with their respective integral tongues andflanges, will preferably be struck-up or pressed from steel or iron, butmay be formed of cast, malleable, or other metal, if preferred.

From the foregoing description it will be understood that the lockingarrangement between the supplemental gate 13 and the stubpost 25 isentirely independent of the gate 10, and the latch connection betweenthe two gates is independent of the engagement between the supplementalgate and the stubpost, whereby it is possible to open and close Byreason of the l tions and other minor details of construction withoutdeparting from the principle of the invention or sacrificing any of itsadvantages.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A device of theclass described comprising two cap members for attachment respectivelyto the free end of a gate and a support over which it is positioned whenclosed, said cap member having longitudinally-disposed tongues forinterlocking engagement when the gate is closed, and withreinforcing-plates connecting said tongues at their roots with saidcaps, substantially as described.

2. A gate-latch of the character described comprising opposite capmembers, one member carrying pendent attaching-flanges and the otherhaving upstanding attaching-flanges, each member having spring tonguescleft therefrom, and one of the tongues having a headed latch projectedbeyond the free end thereof for engagement with the other cap.

3. The combination of a swinging gate, a stub-post driven into theground and over which the outer end bar of the gate is capable ofpassing, a lower plate member spaced above the stub-post and providedwith pendent attaching-flanges embracing and secured to said post, anupper plate member spaced below the outer end bar of the gate andprovided with upstanding flanges embracing and connected to said endbar, said plates being provided with corresponding reversely arrangedspring-tongues cleft therefrom, and a headed latch carried by andprojected beyond the free end of one of the tongues for engagement withthat edge of the other plate adjacent the root of the tongue thereof.

In testimony that 1 claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto aflixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FRANK \V. SIMONS.

Witnesses:

THR ELL NIATE,

JMOBT. RICHARDSON.

